Common BoxwoodBuxus sempervirens

Sometimes called the aristocrat of hedging plants, the boxwood is famous for its use in formal gardens. Crips, high hedges and ornate topiaries are often the result of nurtured and carefully sheared boxwoods. But don’t let that deter you. It is a versatile landscape shrub that works well as a specimen, hedge or mass planting—even in the most casual of gardens.

Soil Preference

Attributes

Features leathery, simple leaves that are a lustrous dark green color, persist year-round, are elliptic or oblong and measure ½–1

Works well for shearing.

Adapts to many soil types.

Will discolor in severe winter weather.

Can be used as a specimen, hedge, mass planting or topiary.

Grows in a rounded shape.

Wildlife Value

Boxwoods contain a toxic alkaloid that makes them unpalatable. As a result, deer and other wildlife tend not to eat them.

History/Lore

Through the years, the boxwood has been associated with formal gardens. Boxwood parterres and hedges can be seen in many of the great gardens of Europe and America. Colonial Williamsburg, especially around the Governor's Mansion, offers wonderful examples of formal boxwood use.

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